Lucia Sherwood
Lucia Sherwood (シャーウッド・ルーシア,'' Shāudo'' Rūshia) is the sniper and second Bishop of the Checkmate Pirates. Appearance Tall and thin, Lucia has a frame befitting her quiet and subtle aura. Her color scheme of choice is themed around pale green and white, though it makes little difference to her. She wears a light green vest with small clasps instead of buttons or laces, with a light, white silk undershirt. Her pants are a darker shade of green and made so as not to restrict her movement as she walks or runs. She wears a longbow and a quiver of unremarkable arrows on her back. Her hair is long and brown, which she usually wears up. She has sharp features, and a very pretty face overall. However, she always wears a light green, lightweight cloth bandanna tightly around her eyes, ted to tie back her hair. She prefers it this way, as she is blind and her eyes are of no use to her anyway. Personality Stoic and silent, she is not as antisocial as Fay but she is not the type to eagerly make herself heard or inject her opinion into a conversation. She toys around with variations of the phrase "Children should be seen and not heard," replacing the noun and swapping the verbs as she sees fit. Any form of this is ironic given her condition, as the most she can do is hear. She was not blind from birth, but due to illness her eyesight deteriorated at a rapid rate following her seventh birthday. Although for the most part she doesn't make a fuss about being envious of others' eyesight, she wears her blindfold because she draws the line at the cosmic sarcasm of letting another person use their eyes to see her own, which cannot see in return. She refuses to let anyone look down on her, and accepts no special treatment from the crew. In this respect, she is thankful to Arthur that he allows her not only to continue on with the crew but expects the same out of her as anyone else on the ship. Relationships Crew Lucia cares about the crew, as they seem so preoccupied with whatever they're doing that they pay her little mind and as such are sure to show her no special treatment. From what she can hear and assume from the rest, the majority of them are far stranger than she is, and she feels much more at home in this environment. Faust Faust and Lucia have an interesting symbiotic relationship. For Lucia's benefit, Faust's computing capabilities can relay an extensive list of information rapidly so that Lucia can build a mental map of her environment and target, down to specifics such as distance, velocity, wind speed, etc. With these quick calculations, Lucia is able to shoot with incredible accuracy. On the flip side, because of her blindness Lucia does not have an instant first impression of Faust based on his appearance, so she judges him for what his personality is like as opposed to what he is. Abilities Before her disease rendered her blind, Lucia had exceptionally good eyesight. She grew up on a small, relatively uninhabited forest island, and valued all her senses for the sake of her survival. After she lost her eyesight she didn't think she would be able to survive any further, especially given her weapon of choice. But to her surprise, her memory of the island proved more than capable of forming a model in which she could envision herself. With the help of the few other citizens, she honed this skill of model creation. If she knew the quantitative measurements relative to herself and her target, she was still able to hit a mark with remarkable accuracy. This model-making, coupled with her infallible memory, enables her to walk and act with certainty despite not being able to see, so long as she has a mental map of her area. After joining the crew and becoming more acquainted with Faust and his medical knowledge, Lucia began to upgrade her arrows and coat them with various toxins and chemicals, both harmful and helpful (in cases of antivenoms, for example.) Her heightened senses, especially her sense of smell, give her a great edge in locating plants that she can use for this purpose. She keeps small flasks of these toxins attached to her quiver, which she can apply to her arrows when she needs them. She herself is immune to all but the harshest natural toxins, as she built an immunity over the years she survived in the forests. Following the temporary disbandment of the Checkmate Pirates where each member engaged in individual training, Lucia underwent training with a figure she calls the Thin Man, because she could tell from his light footfalls that he was far thinner than he should be for his height. Although she adamantly requested training in battle, the Thin Man actually taught her how to relax and let go. He taught her that there is a song and music in everything in the world, in the stones and the trees and every waking soul. Learning this allowed her to unlock her own sense of Kenbunshoku Haki, where could hear the voices of the world around her. This vastly improved her archery prowess and her dodging capabilities. She has also learned how to silence her own voice and that of her arrows, resulting in her lightning-fast shots often being unnoticed by her opponnts until long after their impact. Attacks: Black Arrow (黒矢, Kuro Ya): A shot in the dark, so to speak, where Lucia has nothing but her own senses and feelings to guide her. Though this seems entirely reckless, Lucia's intuition is very good and she has practiced attuning herself to the slightest disturbances that she can sense. The result is that this shot is surprisingly accurate, and can take the opponent by surprise. White Arrow (白矢, Shiro Ya): A shot with full knowledge of where she and the target are, thanks to Faust's rapid detailing of the area. Lucia is able to create a mental image of the battlefield, and then fire her arrows accordingly. Place Arrow '(所矢, ''Tokoro Ya): An unusual technique using an arrow without an arrowhead, so only a blunt stick. Based on the impact a short distance away, Lucia can use the sound to vaguely echolocate, knowing exactly the sounds that the arrow will make at varying distances. The blunt arrow is also good for disabling a target via pressure points, if Faust can guide her accurately enough. '''Blind Bombing Arrow (盲爆矢, Moubaku Ya): A flurry of arrows fired at rapid succession. This is best done using Shiro's slicing powers to replicate the arrows, but it can be executed by Lucia alone. The arrows fall over everything, indiscriminately. There is a double meaning in the attack's name, as moubaku means blind bombing, as in not caring about the target, but it reflects on Lucia's being blind. Toxin Arrow (毒素矢, Dokuso Ya): An arrow that has previously been dipped in a very painful neurotoxin. The toxin spreads throughout the target's body quickly, spreading pain throughout and doing substantial damage to the point of impact, literally crippling the target. Lucia also has an even more potent, fatal version of this technique, but she doesn't trust her blind eyes enough to produce the toxin for fear that it gets mixed up with another. Stun Arrow (麻痺矢, Mahi Ya): Despite the name, this arrow has no icy properties. Instead it is an arrow coated with a toxin not unlike her Cripple Arrow, yet it causes absolutely no pain nor damage to the target (besides the actual arrow wound.) This toxin shuts down the nerves and muscles near the point of impact, effectively freezing the target in place. Grace Arrow (恵み矢, Megumi Ya): A benevolent technique that Lucia uses to heal her allies if they have been poisoned somehow, by her own toxins or otherwise. If she can identify the poison by smell or taste (something she is very proficient at) she can dab an appropriate antivenom onto an arrow and hit her ally from a far distance, hopefully administering the antidote to them. The arrows she uses for this have a much thinner shaft and smaller head than her normal damaging arrows. She also has a variety of stimulants and medicines to boost her allies with this technique. Mapping '(マッピング, Mappingu''): A passive technique where Lucia creates her mental map of her surroundings. Based on her steps she can create a general sense of awareness, but by slowly touching the area with her hands she can gain a surprisingly accurate detailed image. She will never forget this mental map, making her reliable for mazes and puzzles. This is also how she doesn't lose her way on the ship. Post-Training: '''Humming Three-Verse Arrow-Notched Shot (鼻唄三丁矢筈矢, Hanauta Sanchō: Yahazu Ya): A lightning fast attack where Lucia can strike her foe with up to three arrows before they notice the first, due to her quieting the voice of her attacks. Until the third attack the opponent feels no pain, but their body is still subjected to the damage of being shot and the effects of poison on the arrowhead. History Formation of the Checkmate Pirates: The Checkmate Pirates came together on Hayward D. Rockefeller's home island of Deepwater Island. Lucia had been stationed there several weeks prior, as the kingdom had been advertising the position for a security job from other nearby islands prior to the World Noble's visit. She was stationed alongside undercover Vice Admirals Bartleby and Argos, though she was unaware of their position. Because this was a perfect opportunity to prove herself she took this job very seriously. When the supposedly trespassing Arthur was caught by the guards and herself, she was the one to shackle Arthur and bring him and later Mellifera to the jail cell under the castles. However, with Hayward's rebellion against the World Noble, Lucia realized she would be of little help and instead returned to the cell to free Arthur and Mel, assisted by Hina's music to move the fire and stones from their path. She was taken by Mel to the rooftops, where she (eventually, after a series of repositioning by Arthur) managed to shoot the not-fully-intangible Hayward into submission, as well as the key action of disarming him of his lighter. Later, after keeping Vice Admiral Bartleby at bay by pinning back his strands of tape, she boarded the Marine ship along with the rest of the crew. She suggested that they draw attention to the ship with cannon fire before moving to the other one, but was timid when it was suggested that she be the one to do it. However, Faust was able to guide her specifically, hitting a Marine ship dead on before they moved to the World Noble's craft. For her unmatchable skill and overcoming of limitations, Arthur dubbed her a Bishop of the Checkmate Pirates. Extra Art Lucia Sherwood draft.jpg|Lucia Sherwod: Take One. Someone's pissed her off! Credit to Aquatic_Kimothy. Trivia *Lucia's name comes from the actual name Lucia meaning light, while Saint Lucia was the patron saint of the blind. Sherwood Forest is the home of the supposedly historical archer Robin Hood. *Although the crew sometimes thinks she exaggerates this quality to seem less different, Lucia enjoys things to be symmetrical. Inspection of her arrows will reveal them all to be evenly weighted on either side. Because she can't see though, other crew members may have to convince her that something is symmetrical. *Lucia's favorite food is fresh fruit, like peaches and plums. She doesn't like seafood. *Lucia Sherwood (the character) was created by me, Nettlekid. *The excellent original drawing of Lucia Sherwood was done by Aquatic_Kimothy. Category:Checkmate Pirates Category:Characters Category:Snipers Category:Female Category:Pirates